Android version 2.1 for the Motorola Droid is in testing phases over at Verizon, with a rollout coming soon, but no defined date. Here’s the details on the upgrade from Engadget:
It’s based on Android 2.1. The build currently being circulated is identified as 2.1 version 1, mirroring the update just pushed to the Nexus One last week.
Google Goggles is now pre-installed (no matter how unhelpful it may be).
The browser’s now multitouch enabled, just like Google Maps 3.4. Huzzah! No Flash, but then again, we weren’t really expecting that.
Interestingly, the home screen’s still got the same look as 2.0.1, meaning it doesn’t adopt the Nexus One’s rotating 3D grid of app icons — it’s still got the pull-up drawer tab at the bottom.
No active wallpapers. Bummer!
The news and weather widgets introduced on the Nexus One are included. Maybe certain capabilities of 2.1 are going to be restricted to devices with minimum performance benchmarks?
A recent PowerPoint slide (shown below) revealed that the Motorola Zeppelin (shown above), named the CLIQ XT should be coming to T-Mobile USA launching on March 10th. It’s been described as a “CLIQ without a keyboard”, and should appeal to users that want MotoBLUR, but in a much slimmer design. Specs include MOTOBLUR running on 1.5 (why oh why?), a 3.2-inch HVGA screen, GPS, 5 MP camera with flash, and touch sensitive trackpad and navigational buttons. The price point is rumored to be at or below the current CLIQ, making it an attractive option for new smartphone buyers that don’t need to the high end specs of more expensive models.
This could be the next Android handset coming to Verizon Wireless customers. Said to be running a 1Ghz SnapDragon processor, Android 2.1 with Sense, 256MB of RAM, a 3.5″ or 3.7″ WVGA screen, also a dual LED flash on the camera. Specs equivalent to the Nexus One, but with CDMA love. There is also what is described as an “optical mouse pointer” near the bottom of the device. Hit the link for a few more pictures and a video.
[via PocketNow]
Here’s a video showing how some crafty developers got Android running on the Sony Ericsson X1. Both Android 1.6 and 2.0.1 have been successfully ported to the X1, with a few things yet to be fixed, such as the camera, GPS and bluetooth. But that’s not the point right? It’s about using Android on whatever device you want. From the video you can see it’s not exactly perfect, but if you’ve got an X1, and you feel a little frisky, head over to xda-developers for all the details.
This is one of the first pictures of the rumored HTC device for Sprint’s 4G network. Codenamed the HTC Supersonic, it features a 4.3-inch touchscreen and 1GHz Snapdragon processor, Sense UI like the HTC Hero, and of course Sprint’s WiMax 4G bands. It’s unclear if this is supposed to be a prototype or a production model, but we can only hope an official announcement is around the corner soon.
Sprint users, you excited to trade in your Hero or Moment for this baby?
One of the selling point of the Nexus One and features of Android 2.1 is the voice recognition software. Nearly every text field will accept voice input, and fairly accurately, transcribe your voice as text.
But an interesting feature, is that curse words are purposely filtered out, and replaced with a string of #’s. While we believe it should at least be an option to turn this feature on or off, Google’s explanation makes sense from their standpoint:
“We filter potentially offensive or inappropriate results because we want to avoid situations whereby we might misrecognize a spoken query and return profanity when, in fact, the user said something completely innocent,”
“Ultimately our goal is to return results that show exactly what you said, and we’re constantly working to improve the technology to better fit our users’ needs.”
What do you guys think? Good move on Google’s part, or just a censoring feature? Afterall, you still can type whatever vulgar words you want.
You’re looking at a chat transcription between a Cliq owner and what appears to be a Motorola rep about 1.6 coming to the Cliq. The rumor seems that it’s in development and should be released next month. Of course, with no official announcement, it’s still in the rumors section. Seems about time for an update, or is Motorola hoping everyone forgot about the Cliq when the Droid came out?
First off, this is not a guide to pirating apps. There are legit reasons for wanting to backup your applications. Sometimes an older version of the app worked better, or had features you liked better. Sometimes new versions don’t work with specific phones and you need to revert back. Now, you can use AppManager to backup most apps, but protected apps are not included in this because they are stored in a different directory. With a rooted phone, you can access this directory and copy the apps to your SD card or to your computer. After all, you paid for it, it’s yours. If you want to pirate apps, or buy an app, copy it then return it, that’s on you, I’m not advocating that.
First method, copy with your phone to SD card:
Install and open a Terminal Emulator on your phone.
Enter su to be superuser (root).
Enter cd /data/app-private/ to enter the protected application directory.
Use ls to view the apps in the directory.
Enter cp filename.apk /sdcard to copy a single app to your SD card.
(Or to backup all the protected apps: cp * /sdcard)
If you want to backup all your apps, they can be found in /data/app/
There really needs to be more Android accessories with featuring the mascot robot. Most accessories are boring these days. And if they are flashy or interesting, it’s the wrong kind, like Hello Kitty branded stuff.
This is the wall charger that came with an Android knockoff phone called the SciPhone. It will take a normal sized USB cable so it can be used with multiple phones, or any USB device really. Picked it up on eBay for 8 bucks, but I can’t seem to find them on there anymore. Oh, and the eyes are green LEDs that light up when it’s plugged in.
The CLIQ doesn’t really take good pictures in low light, does it?
Remember the excitement when the G1 was first rooted? Now there’s the same for owners of the Sprint Hero and Samsung Behold 2. For the Hero, there’s a thread over at xda-developers with clear instructions on how to Root your Sprint Hero. Not much yet in the way of custom ROMS or other goodies, but you can run applications that require superuser such as wireless tethering.
For Samsung Behold 2 owners, head over to All Droid for your rooting instructions.
I don’t have either of these handsets, so I can test myself, but if anyone successfully roots (or doesn’t), let us know in the comments how it went. And as always with hacking and modifying your phone, do so at your own risk.
Android version 2.1 for the Motorola Droid is in testing phases over at Verizon, with a rollout coming soon, but no defined date. Here’s the details on the upgrade from Engadget:
First off, this is not a guide to pirating apps. There are legit reasons for wanting to backup your applications. Sometimes an older version of the app worked better, or had features you liked better. Sometimes new versions don’t work with specific phones and you need to revert back. Now, you can use AppManager to backup most apps, but protected apps are not included in this because they are stored in a different directory. With a rooted phone, you can access this directory and copy the apps to your SD card or to your computer. After all, you paid for it, it’s yours. If you want to pirate apps, or buy an app, copy it then return it, that’s on you, I’m not advocating that.
Remember the excitement when the G1 was first rooted? Now there’s the same for owners of the Sprint Hero and Samsung Behold 2. For the Hero, there’s a